A Transmigrator's Disillusionment

one ;;

Drivel of conversations float around your mind, present yet unprocessed.

Slowly, like stepping into a crowded room where all conversations stop and turn towards the opening door, you blink yourself back into reality.

21 years of age, sitting in on your first year of university after dropping out of school at 16 and working ever since.

Everything was reminding you of why you never wanted to come back to educational settings.

The person to your right, Lara, sneezed into her shirt and proceeded to pull out a packet of tissues and blow her nose, disturbingly loudly, yet no one budged from how badly they wanted to get this class over and done with.

It was going on 6pm, and typically you had a longer fuse.. But the room had been stuffy from the minute you walked in.

And almost every second minute, another student would dry cough, open-mouthed and unbothered to have any decency. For close to 4 hours.

Your eye twitched as you heard a few more rounds of sniffling, slowly pulling your shirt up over your nose.

Had the recent pandemic taught no one anything about spreading sick?

These were post-graduate children, and adults too busy with life to give that much of a shit.

You guessed not.

"Since the lecture's almost over anyway, you guys can start packing it up." The Lecturer didn't have to finish that sentence before students began shoving their belongings away, though he continued. "Remember people, there's two workshops later that run to 8PM if there's anything you're still confused about."

You'd shoved all your papers into your bag, not caring if any one of them crinkled or concequently ripped apart from the force of books and more papers being forced to the bottom of an already buldging bag of stuff.

It'd been half a year already and you hadn't cleaned it out once.

As you were about to get up and ignore the Lecturer's advice about the extra workshops, you heard your name being called.

You couldn't deal with this.

At home were your two older grandparents, frail and dependant on you.

Each hour spent away from the house meant more tasks those poor old people were trying to take care of themselves.

"Sir, can you make this quick? I have to go make dinner, and my grandparents-" Your sentence died on your lips as he waves off your concerns.

"You've been showing up to classes really inconsistently this term. Are you sure you couldn't squeeze in just one workshop class? I'll be joining the workshop in the next building over, room K-2. I'd love to see a struggling student do well, you have amazing potential if you just set your mind to it! I believe in you."

It's like the air was taken from your lungs at the only opportunity you had to explain your circumstances.

Defeatedly, you nodded, unable to ruin someone else's expectations amongst the sea of people that'd given up on your future and potential to progress.

"Sure.." Your voice cane out quieter than you wanted, but he seemed to beam at your relenting. "Great! See you there soon, I've just gotta tell Ms. Kelly about something real quick."

With a heavy sigh and a quickness to your steps, you rushed out of the building to the next, looking on the first floor for the room you were supposed to be attending. It was hard to miss, right next to an open cafe-style booth.